HATTIESBURG, Miss. -
Southern Miss football and baseball signee Anthony Alford was selected in the third round (112th overall pick) of the 2012 Major League Baseball First Year Player Draft Tuesday by the Toronto Blue Jays.

Alford batted .483 for Petal (Miss.) High School this past season, leading the Panthers to the Region 5-6A title and the second round of the playoffs. His stats included 11 doubles, 4 home runs and 31 RBI while tallying 39 runs and was 14-of-14 in stolen-base attempts.

Alford was named the Gatorade Mississippi Baseball Player of the Year for the 2012 season. The award recognizes outstanding athletic excellence, as well as high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character on and off the field. Alford is the fourth Petal baseball standout to earn the Gatorade award.

He is ranked No. 48 in the nation among the top baseball prospects in the country as rated by ESPNHS.

Alford won the Gatorade Player of the Year honor three times after earning the state's football Player of the Year award in 2010 and 2011.

This is the second year the Golden Eagles have had a signee get drafted in the third round. Connor Barron, who recently completed his freshman season with the Golden Eagles, was the No. 102 overall pick in last year's MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Florida Marlins.

Former Golden Eagle B.A. Vollmuth was also picked in the third round - the 105th pick - to the Oakland Athletics.